Risk increases for police when more guns are readily available

Updated 1:16 pm, Monday, August 31, 2015

Photo: Kirk Meche, MBO

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A memorial service took place in honor of La. State Trooper Steven VincentÂs home town of Iowa, La., Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015, at the Iowa High School football stadium. Vincent succumbed to his injuries yesterday morning after he was shot by Kevin Dangle during the course of a traffic incident Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015. (Kirk Meche/American Press via AP) less

A memorial service took place in honor of La. State Trooper Steven VincentÂs home town of Iowa, La., Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015, at the Iowa High School football stadium. Vincent succumbed to his injuries ... more

Photo: Kirk Meche, MBO

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This undated image released by the Louisiana State Police via the New Orleans Times Picayune shows Louisiana Senior Trooper Steven Vincent. Vincent, 43, was critically injured Sunday afternoon, Aug. 23, 2015, after authorities say he was shot in the head during a traffic stop in Calcasieu Parish, La. A man accused of shooting a state trooper with a sawed-off shotgun told him afterward, "You're lucky Â you're going to die soon," according to the head of Louisiana State Police.(Louisiana State Police/The Times Picayune via AP) less

This undated image released by the Louisiana State Police via the New Orleans Times Picayune shows Louisiana Senior Trooper Steven Vincent. Vincent, 43, was critically injured Sunday afternoon, Aug. 23, 2015, ... more

Photo: MBR

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In a handout from the Harris County Sheriff's Office, Darren Goforth, a deputy who was fatally shot while filling his gas tank in suburban Houston on Aug. 29, 2015. No one has been charged and investigators do not yet know a motive for the execution-style killing, which followed two recent deaths of law enforcement officers in nearby Louisiana. (Harris County Sheriff's Office via The New York Times) -- FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. less

In a handout from the Harris County Sheriff's Office, Darren Goforth, a deputy who was fatally shot while filling his gas tank in suburban Houston on Aug. 29, 2015. No one has been charged and investigators do ... more

Photo: HARRIS COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, HO

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Gun owners by state

A Columbia University team published a paper this week on gun ownership rates around the country. The study finds that the highest rates of gun ownership comes in areas with a strong "gun culture." In addition, many owners are older than 55 years old and in states with low population density. See the gun ownership rate in all 50 states.

A Columbia University team published a paper this week on gun ownership rates around the country. The study finds that the highest rates of gun ownership comes in areas with a strong "gun culture." In addition, ... more

Photo: Eric Gay, Associated Press

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 5.2 percent

Delaware

Gun ownership: 5.2 percent

Delaware

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 5.8 percent

Rhode Island

Gun ownership: 5.8 percent

Rhode Island

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 10.3 percent

New York

Gun ownership: 10.3 percent

New York

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 11.3 percent

New Jersey

Gun ownership: 11.3 percent

New Jersey

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 14.4 percent

New Hampshire

Gun ownership: 14.4 percent

New Hampshire

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 16.6 percent

Connecticut

Gun ownership: 16.6 percent

Connecticut

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 19.6 percent

Ohio

Gun ownership: 19.6 percent

Ohio

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 19.8 percent

Nebraska

Gun ownership: 19.8 percent

Nebraska

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 20.1 percent

California

Gun ownership: 20.1 percent

California

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 20.7 percent

Maryland

Gun ownership: 20.7 percent

Maryland

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 22.6 percent

Maine

Gun ownership: 22.6 percent

Maine

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 22.6 percent

Massachusetts

Gun ownership: 22.6 percent

Massachusetts

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 26.2 percent

Illinois

Gun ownership: 26.2 percent

Illinois

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 26.6 percent

Oregon

Gun ownership: 26.6 percent

Oregon

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 27.1 percent

Pennsylvania

Gun ownership: 27.1 percent

Pennsylvania

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 27.1 percent

Missouri

Gun ownership: 27.1 percent

Missouri

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 27.7 percent

Washington

Gun ownership: 27.7 percent

Washington

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 28.7 percent

North Carolina

Gun ownership: 28.7 percent

North Carolina

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 28.8 percent

Michigan

Gun ownership: 28.8 percent

Michigan

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 28.8 percent

Vermont

Gun ownership: 28.8 percent

Vermont

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 29.3 percent

Virginia

Gun ownership: 29.3 percent

Virginia

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 31.2 percent

Oklahoma

Gun ownership: 31.2 percent

Oklahoma

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 31.6 percent

Georgia

Gun ownership: 31.6 percent

Georgia

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 31.9 percent

Utah

Gun ownership: 31.9 percent

Utah

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 32.2 percent

Kansas

Gun ownership: 32.2 percent

Kansas

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 32.3 percent

Arizona

Gun ownership: 32.3 percent

Arizona

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 32.5 percent

Florida

Gun ownership: 32.5 percent

Florida

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 33.8 percent

Indiana

Gun ownership: 33.8 percent

Indiana

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 33.8 percent

Iowa

Gun ownership: 33.8 percent

Iowa

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 34.3 percent

Colorado

Gun ownership: 34.3 percent

Colorado

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 35.0 percent

South Dakota

Gun ownership: 35.0 percent

South Dakota

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 36.7 percent

Minnesota

Gun ownership: 36.7 percent

Minnesota

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 34.7 percent

Wisconsin

Gun ownership: 34.7 percent

Wisconsin

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 35.7 percent

Texas

Gun ownership: 35.7 percent

Texas

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 37.5 percent

Nevada

Gun ownership: 37.5 percent

Nevada

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 39.4 percent

Tennessee

Gun ownership: 39.4 percent

Tennessee

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 42.4 percent

Kentucky

Gun ownership: 42.4 percent

Kentucky

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 42.8 percent

Mississippi

Gun ownership: 42.8 percent

Mississippi

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 44.4 percent

South Carolina

Gun ownership: 44.4 percent

South Carolina

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 44.5 percent

Louisiana

Gun ownership: 44.5 percent

Louisiana

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 45.1 percent

Hawaii

Gun ownership: 45.1 percent

Hawaii

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 47.9 percent

North Dakota

Gun ownership: 47.9 percent

North Dakota

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 48.9 percent

Alabama

Gun ownership: 48.9 percent

Alabama

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 49.9 percent

New Mexico

Gun ownership: 49.9 percent

New Mexico

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 52.3 percent

Montana

Gun ownership: 52.3 percent

Montana

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 53.8 percent

Wyoming

Gun ownership: 53.8 percent

Wyoming

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 54.2 percent

West Virginia

Gun ownership: 54.2 percent

West Virginia

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 56.9 percent

Idaho

Gun ownership: 56.9 percent

Idaho

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 57.9 percent

Arkansas

Gun ownership: 57.9 percent

Arkansas

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Gun owners by state

Gun ownership: 61.7 percent

Alaska

Gun ownership: 61.7 percent

Alaska

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Click through the slides to see if the things people say about gun violence are true or just loaded statements.

Click through the slides to see if the things people say about gun violence are true or just loaded statements.

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Facts and myths about gun violence

Rumor #1: Adolf Hitler favored gun control.

Veracity: False.

What to know: The Treaty of Versailles tightened gun regulations in Germany after World War I. Hitler worked to loosen firearm restrictions for the country, except for one group of people: the Jews. In 1938, the Nazis passed the Regulations Against Jews’ Possessions of Weapons, while gun ownership rose for the rest of the country.

But to act like that regulation against the Jews is a mark against “gun control” is specious. More guns would not have stopped the Holocaust. The law was just one of many measures passed by the Nazis in a much larger scheme to persecute and eliminate the Jewish people.

What to know: Pro-gun pundits sometimes modify these claims, saying hammers kill more than rifles or AK-47s. That’s true, but extremely misleading. Those weapons, while prominent in pop culture, aren’t responsible for the majority of gun deaths in the country.
The FBI totaled 6,220 handgun deaths compared to 496 deaths by blunt objects in 2011, according to Politifact.

What to know: It’s not uncommon to hear the media or individuals refer to automatic and semi-automatic weapons as interchangeable. Automatic weapons -- which need only one pull of the trigger to fire multiple shots – are heavily regulated and banned in some states. Not many people own them. Semi-automatic weapons require a pull of the trigger for every shot.

What to know: Texas is not the Wild West. Politifact debunked a claim that “it’s legal to shoot someone who’s committing a ‘public nuisance’ under the cover of dark” in Texas. Guns and Ammo lists the Lone Star State as merely the 15th best state for gun owners in its 2015 rankings (Arizona was no. 1). And Texas has nowhere near the highest percentage of gun owners by state. Only a third of residents own a gun, compared to half in states like Arkansas and Wyoming.

Rumor #5: The U.S. has a much higher firearm homicide rate than the rest of the developed world.

Veracity: True.

What to know: The key word here is “developed.” The comparison only works when comparing the U.S. to first-world countries like Israel, Japan, Australia or the countries that make up Western Europe. Most (not all) of those countries have strict gun regulations. Mass shootings (four or more people shot or killed) are significantly more common here.

Rumor #6: The National Rifle Association was founded to protect freed slaves and fought the KKK.

Veracity: False.

What to know: Not even the NRA claims this. On its website, the organization says the group was founded by Union veterans to help troops improve marksmanship. The Ku Klux Klan formed soon after the Civil War as well, but there’s no evidence the NRA wanted to stand up to them. One civil rights activist, Robert Williams, received an NRA charter and formed the Black Armed Guard to oppose the Klan, Politifact writes. That hardly counts though.

A 2013 Pew Research Center poll showed 85 percent of Americans favored “background checks for private and gun show sales,” and 80 percent favor more policies preventing the mentally ill from obtaining guns. Even 67 percent of respondents support a “federal database to track gun sales.” And more than half of Americans want bans on “high-capacity” clips, online sales of ammunition, semi-automatic weapons and assault style weapons.

What to know: Yes, that’s a crucial reason why Texas had an open carry ban on handguns in the first place. The Houston Chronicle wrote last December about how in 1871 the state passed a ban on carrying pistols that was a thinly veiled means for selectively enforcing the law against black people. Many other southern states flat out made it illegal for blacks to possess guns.

What to know:Barack Obama and others have made this claim. The ATF program purposely peddled guns at the U.S.-Mexico border to better trace them – and then the government agency lost track of the arms. The screw-up began more than a year after Obama’s election. Unlike what Rick Perry has claimed, Obama seemingly did not initiate or approve of “Fast and Furious.” Nevertheless the blunder occurred under the Obama administration.

Rumor #10: George Washington wanted an armed citizenry to protect against abuse from one’s “own government.”

Veracity: False.

What to know: That’s a bogus quote from the first president. Thomas Jefferson didn't say anything like it either. Washington said “a free people ought not only to be armed but disciplined.” He supported the right to bear arms, of course. However, the founding father supported a militia for taking on outside forces (under the auspice of the government).

Historians agree that Washington was not implying that Americans should be armed to fight their own leaders. Yet “resistance against government tyranny” is an oft-repeated point by gun rights activists. As if an armed militia has any chance against a predator drone.

Rumor #11: More Americans die from gun violence in the U.S. than in Afghanistan (or Iraq).

Veracity: Unfair claim.

What to know: Yes, guns kill more Americans in their homeland than abroad. But that’s cause way more Americans live in the United States than Afghanistan or Iraq (makes sense, right?). A better comparison is homicide rate, and Americans die at a much higher clip in foreign wars.

Rumor #12: The UN wants to create an international gun registry or ban.

Veracity: False.

What to know: This rumor spun out of control over an Arms Trade Treaty designed to stop the flow of illicit international sales. It had nothing to do with regulating sales within the U.S. or circumventing the Second Amendment, a claim once made by former Texas senate candidate Craig James.

What to know: Allen West and other pundits have cited the Environmental Protection Agency shutting down a smelter last year as proof that gun owners will have to buy their bullets overseas. Nothing supports this agenda. And the closing of the smelter had no effect on ammunition prices. Most lead for firearms in the U.S. is made from secondary sources like old car batteries, a National Shooting Sports Foundation spokesman told Politifact.
The ATF has banned bullets that could pierce police body armor. But the weapons that use those bullets could easily substitute other ammunition.

Three policemen killed last week in separate incidents within two hours of Beaumont re-emphasized the risk of protect-and-serve, even in settings that seem routine, but national researchers say the job doesn't have to be so dangerous.

Reduce the number of guns in a community, and police homicides should fall, according to a peer-reviewed study published this month in a national journal.

Harris County sheriff's deputy Darren Goforth was ambushed and killed while refueling his cruiser at a Chevron station Friday night after responding to a routine car accident about 30 minutes previously.

"He was pumping into his vehicle ... and the male suspect came up behind him and shot the deputy multiple times," said Deputy Thomas Gilliland at a press briefing.

Even after Goforth fell to the ground, the man continued firing shot after shot into his body before fleeing in a Ford pick-up.

Louisiana Trooper Steven Vincent found a pick-up truck in a ditch near Lake Charles on Aug. 23, learned it was previously reported in connection with reckless driving and approached the driver, according to state police. The driver pulled out a shotgun and killed Vincent, authorities said.

On Wednesday, Sunset (Louisiana) Police officer Henry Nelson responded to a report of stabbing about two hours east of Beaumont and was shot and killed after the suspect apparently got access to the officer's gun, the local sheriff told the Associated Press.

Three different settings - and different degrees of access to guns — but the result was the same: Cops were killed with guns.

Louisiana's population owns firearms at a higher rate than the national average, according to data used by the researchers. That elevated ownership rate, according to the new study, is a precursor for a greater number of police homicides.

Texans' gun-ownership rate is close to the national average, according to the study.

Public access to guns, a right treasured by Texas and most of rural America, is a distinct on-the-job hazard for police, it found.

Local police chiefs dismissed the study, arguing that a person's temperament is a better predictor of violent behavior than access to firearms. Guns obtained and possessed within the law cause them no alarm, they said.

The last shooting death of a local police officer was 27 years ago. Four law enforcement officers have been killed locally other ways since 2001.

"I think in a lot of ways I'm as scared of a butcher knifeas a gun," said Lumberton Police Chief Danny Sullins. "Most folks in our community, Hardin County and Lumberton, a vast-majority of folks are law-abiding, church-going people that enjoy the sport of guns or have them for self-defense."

David Rosenbloom, a professor of health policy and management at Boston University, said the study echoes other research nationally and abroad that shows an area's homicide rate correlates with the availability of firearms. What this study does differently is show that law enforcement officers are not immune to that link, said Rosenbloom, who was not affiliated with the study.

Texas, meanwhile, is on the cusp of a significant expansion of gun rights. In four months, people will obtain licenses to walk around with handguns holstered in plain view on their hips, after the state's Legislature this year authorized open carry for the first time since the Reconstruction era. A year from now, current concealed-carry licenses will allow people to carry firearms on college campuses as long as the weapons are hidden; university systems are still working out specific rules, such as no-go zones.

More guns, greater risk

Officers in places where larger portions of the population own guns are at greater danger of being killed, whether it's with a gun or by other means, according to the study, which was published in the American Journal of Public Health.

From 1996 to 2010, the period reviewed, 782 police officers were victims of homicide while in the line of duty, the study says. Of those, 92 percent were killed with firearms, and handguns were used in nearly three of four of the firearm homicides, the authors wrote.

The researchers pulled data for gun ownership and homicide rates in each state and compared the two.

When calculating the officer-homicide rate for each state, researchers didn't make a distinction for how an officer was killed, even though gun deaths were by far the most prevalent.

The broader finding was cultural: The threat of death on the job is greater in areas with a higher rates of gun ownership.

"Officers in the high-gun states had (three) times the likelihood of being killed compared with low-gun states," they wrote. An increase in firearm ownership during that time was mirrored by an increase in officer homicides.

Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Mississippi and Montana were the states in the highest of five groupings for both gun ownership and police homicide rates. Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island ranked in the lowest groupings of both. Louisiana's firearm ownership rates placed it in the second-highest grouping; it was in the top group for officer homicides.

Texas ranked in the middle of five groupings in both categories.

In the line of duty

The last officer killed locally with a firearm in the line of duty was Paul Hulsey Jr. on March 22, 1988, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page, which chronicles line-of-duty deaths nationwide.

Hulsey, a Beaumont police officer, was killed at a local hotel by Michael Lee Lockhart. Hulsey discovered Lockhart was driving a stolen vehicle and was shot twice inside a room while trying to make an arrest.

Lockhart, it was later learned, was wanted for killing teenaged girls in Florida and Indiana. Texas executed him in 1997.

Since 2001, three Beaumont police officers - Bryan Hebert, Lisa Beaulieu and Conrad Gernale - and a Texas Parks and Wildlife game warden, Michael Pauling, were killed with vehicles. Drivers in those cases were charged with either capital murder or intoxicated manslaughter.

Shows said a more focused study would use the number of guns that are possessed outside of the law. He reasoned that people who illegally obtain guns are more likely to commit other crimes than people who keep them in their homes or undergo background checks to get concealed- or open-carry licenses.

Hardin County residents lead the way locally in the share of its adult-age population that have license to carry concealed handguns, according to a comparison of Texas Department of Public Safety and Census data*.